Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.15

Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a dividend of 0.15 per share on Tuesday, September 22nd. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th.

Eastern Bankshares has a dividend payout ratio of 31.3% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Eastern Bankshares to earn $2.17 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 27.6%.

Eastern Bankshares Trading Up 0.2%

NASDAQ EBC opened at $22.62 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.71 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Eastern Bankshares has a one year low of $14.88 and a one year high of $23.53. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $21.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.43.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.03. Eastern Bankshares had a net margin of 26.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The company had revenue of $316.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $308.20 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Eastern Bankshares will post 1.87 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Eastern Bankshares

In related news, Director Luis Borgen sold 1,710 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.71, for a total value of $38,834.10. Following the sale, the director owned 20,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $464,987.25. This trade represents a 7.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,874,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $403,138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,440,017 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 33.0% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,728,558 shares of the company’s stock worth $253,018,000 after buying an additional 3,407,066 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Eastern Bankshares by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,552,160 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,048,000 after acquiring an additional 939,740 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,919,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,385,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389,304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Eastern Bankshares by 185.9% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,437,108 shares of the company’s stock worth $137,066,000 after acquiring an additional 4,835,474 shares during the period. 71.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Eastern Bankshares

Eastern Bankshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Eastern Bank, one of the oldest and largest mutual banks in the United States. Founded in 1818 as Salem Savings Bank and later rebranded as Eastern Bank in 1989, the company preserved its mutual ownership structure for more than two centuries. In March 2020, it completed an initial public offering and began trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker EBC, while continuing to emphasize its community-focused heritage.

Through its primary subsidiary, Eastern Bank, the company delivers a broad range of commercial and consumer banking products.